Kinetic chain energy movement pilates strap pad

ABSTRACT

Provided is a kinetic chain energy movement (KEM) Pilates strap pad. The KEM Pilates strap pad includes a pad body for supporting a foot, a support belt extending from two opposite sides of the pad body and provided with a connection link at a portion thereof located above the pad body so as to connect the pad body to an exercise machine, and an elastic unit extending from a portion of the support belt located above the pad body to a rear portion of the pad body so as to elastically connect the support belt and the pad body. The KEM Pilates strap pad supports a user&#39;s hand or foot so as to produce the same effect as when the user performs exercise on the floor, thereby effectively achieving correction of bones and muscles of the user&#39;s body.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to a kinetic chain energy movement (KEM) Pilates strap pad, and more particularly to a KEM Pilates strap pad, which is capable of supporting a user's hand or foot when the user performs upper-body or lower-body exercise so as to produce the same effect as when the user performs exercise on the floor, thereby effectively achieving correction of bones and muscles of the user's body using an exercise machine to which the KEM Pilates strap pad is applied.

DESCRIPTION OF THE RELATED ART

In general, bones or muscles of a human body develop irregularly depending on the sitting posture, gait, sleep habits, etc. If such irregular development is left unchecked for a long period of time, the bones or muscles become unbalanced, leading to musculoskeletal disorders or nerve disorders.

Such disorders may cause an abnormal body shape, for example, abnormal lateral curvature of the spine, imbalance of the shoulders, etc., and thus may interfere with normal social life.

In recent years, in view of the aforementioned problems, Pilates is drawing attention as a form of exercise for balancing the body (bones, muscles, etc.), keeping the body in shape by correcting the posture, or reducing pain due to the imbalance of bones and muscles.

That is, Pilates is an exercise for balancing the bones or muscles, thereby curing musculoskeletal disorders and keeping the body healthy and in shape.

Recently, various kinds of shoes, such as high heels, elevator shoes, etc., which enhance the appearance of a wearer, have been released.

These shoes, however, only temporarily enhance the appearance of a wearer, and undesirably cause a wearer to develop an incorrect gait or unbalance the musculoskeletal system, eventually having a negative influence on health.

As is well known, an entire human body is an organically connected thing. According to the myofascial meridian concept, which is described in a book entitled “Anatomy Trains”, which has been recently spotlighted, the neutral position of a hand or a foot, which is an origin of all myofascial meridians, is very important to body shape correction, and thus it is effective in correcting the body shape to place a hand or a foot in the neutral position when performing a body shape correction exercise.

The state in which a foot is maintained in the neutral position refers to the state in which, when a person stands, his/her weight is evenly distributed over the foot, preferably, in which the pressure generated due to the weight is evenly (about 50:50) applied to pressures points ahead of and behind the root of the big toe (i.e. the sesamoid bone) and to pressure points ahead of and behind the root of the little toe, which are located in the forefoot, and to pressure points ahead of and behind the heel bone (i.e. the calcaneus bone), which is located in the rearfoot.

Further, when it comes to the upper extremities, the hand is also an origin of myofascial meridians. Therefore, it is effective in correction of round shoulders and strengthening of core muscles and upper-body muscles to utilize the whole palm using a pad when performing such a corrective exercise.

With the development of industry, most people spend more time sitting instead of standing, which causes hamstring muscles and Achilles tendon to be shortened and eventually leads to unbalanced posture and pains due to reduction of flexibility of the body.

In order to solve this problem, upper-body and lower-body exercise using a reformer, which is a kind of Pilates device, is drawing attention.

The upper-body and lower-body exercise using a reformer is performed in a manner in which a user performs exercise in the state in which the user puts the user's hand or foot in a strap, which is provided in a band configuration at the reformer. However, when the user performs exercise using the reformer, the middle portion of the user's hand or foot is put in the strap and the user's hand or foot is therefore maintained in a curved shape. Therefore, it has a limitation in correcting the hand or the foot so as to be maintained in the proper neutral position, and consequently the body correction effect is degraded.

Further, it is not effective in resolving imbalance of the upper-body muscles or the lower-body muscles, such as the hamstring muscles and the Achilles tendon.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Therefore, the present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and it is an object of the present invention to provide a kinetic chain energy movement (KEM) Pilates strap pad, which is constructed such that a pad configured to support a user's whole hand or whole foot is connected to a strap of an exercise machine (e.g. a reformer) so that the user may perform exercise while placing the user's hand or foot in the neutral position, thereby effectively correcting the hand or the foot so as to be maintained in the proper neutral position and resolving imbalance of the Achilles tendon and the hamstring muscles.

In accordance with the present invention, the above and other objects can be accomplished by the provision of a kinetic chain energy movement (KEM) Pilates strap pad including a pad body for supporting a foot, a support belt extending from two opposite sides of the pad body and provided with a connection link at a portion thereof located above the pad body so as to connect the pad body to an exercise machine, and an elastic unit extending from a portion of the support belt located above the pad body to a rear portion of the pad body so as to elastically connect the support belt and the pad body.

The KEM Pilates strap pad may further include a heel support belt having two opposite end portions connected to the support belt so as to surround and support a heel.

The pad body may be provided in a pair, and the KEM Pilates strap pad may further include a stance adjustment plate to which the pair of pad bodies is mounted.

The stance adjustment plate may have a stance adjustment slot formed in a middle portion thereof in a longitudinal direction, the pad body may include a bolt, extending from a bottom surface thereof so as to be fitted through the stance adjustment slot, and a nut, configured to be engaged with or disengaged from the bolt so as to secure or remove the pad body to/from the stance adjustment plate, and a distance between the pair of pad bodies or an angle of the pad body may be adjusted to correspond to an exercise condition by engagement or disengagement between the bolt and the nut.

The elastic unit may include an elastic band connection member, connected to the connection link provided at the support belt at a middle portion thereof and extending a predetermined length in bilateral directions of the pad body from the middle portion thereof, and a pair of elastic bands, each having one end connected to an end of the elastic band connection member that is spaced apart from the connection link and an opposite end connected to a rear portion of the pad body, thereby elastically connecting the support belt and the pad body.

The stance adjustment plate may have distance adjustment gradations formed therein so as to check a distance between the pair of pad bodies coupled to the stance adjustment plate and adjust the distance between the pair of pad bodies to a desired value, and angle adjustment gradations formed therein so as to check an angle of the pad body and adjust the angle of the pad body to a desired value.

The distance adjustment gradations and the angle adjustment gradations may be formed on both a top surface and a bottom surface of the stance adjustment plate.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The above and other objects, features and other advantages of the present invention will be more clearly understood from the following detailed description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a KEM Pilates strap pad according to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a view illustrating the state in which a user performs lower-body exercise using a reformer to which the KEM Pilates strap pad according to the embodiment of the present invention is applied;

FIG. 3 is a view illustrating the state in which a user performs upper-body exercise using the reformer to which the KEM Pilates strap pad according to the embodiment of the present invention is applied;

FIG. 4 is a perspective view illustrating the state in which the KEM Pilates strap pad according to the embodiment of the present invention is assembled with a stance adjustment plate;

FIG. 5 is a perspective view illustrating the state in which the KEM Pilates strap pad according to the embodiment of the present invention is disassembled from the stance adjustment plate; and

FIG. 6 is a view illustrating the state in which the KEM Pilates strap pad according to the embodiment of the present invention is applied to a Gyrotonic machine.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the attached drawings.

The present invention relates to a kinetic chain energy movement (KEM) Pilates strap pad, which is capable of being applied to an existing reformer or Gyrotonic machine and, further, of improving the body correction effect and the exercise effect by placing the user's hand or foot in the neutral position.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a KEM Pilates strap pad according to an embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a view illustrating the state in which a user performs lower-body exercise using a reformer to which the KEM Pilates strap pad according to the embodiment of the present invention is applied, and FIG. 3 is a view illustrating the state in which a user performs upper-body exercise using the reformer to which the KEM Pilates strap pad according to the embodiment of the present invention is applied.

Referring to FIGS. 1 to 3, the present invention comprises a pad body 10, a support belt 20, a heel support belt 30, an elastic unit 40, and a stance adjustment plate 50.

The pad body 10 has a rectangular-shaped, foot-shaped or oval-shaped pad configuration, and has support belt connection slots 11 formed in the middle portions of the two opposite sides thereof, through which the support belt 20 passes so as to be coupled to the pad body 10.

The pad body 10 has a concave support recess 12 formed in the top surface thereof so as to stably support a hand or a foot placed therein.

The support recess 12 may be formed to have a shape that matches a palm or a sole, thereby enabling the user to feel comfortable when performing exercise and allowing pressure to be evenly applied to pressure points in the hand or the foot by placing the hand or the foot in the neutral position, ultimately maximizing the body correction effect.

The pad body 10 has elastic unit connection holes 13 symmetrically formed therethrough at positions near the two rear corners of the pad body 10, to which the elastic unit 40 is connected.

The support belt 20 is fitted through the support belt connection slots 11, and the two opposite end portions of the support belt 20 are joined to each other (e.g. by means of sewing) above the pad body 10 so as to surround and support the back of the user's hand or the top of the user's foot.

A connection link 21 is provided at the joined portion of the support belt 20 and is oriented upwards so as to be connected with an exercise machine (e.g. a reformer, a Gyrotonic machine, etc.).

The connection link 21 includes a strap connection portion 21 a, which is provided at the top portion of the connection link 21 so as to be connected with an exercise machine, and an elastic-unit-coupling portion 21 b, which is provided directly below the strap connection portion 21 a so as to be connected with the elastic unit 40. Therefore, the present invention can be easily applied to an existing exercise machine merely by fastening the link to the exercise machine.

One end portion of the heel support belt 30 is secured to the portion of the support belt 20 that is located near one side of the pad body 10, and the opposite end portion of the heel support belt 30 is provided with a length adjustment Velcro strap 32 for adjusting the length of the heel support belt 30 in consideration of the size of the user's foot.

Further, the support belt 20 is provided with a length adjustment link 31 at the portion thereof that is located near the opposite side of the pad body 10 so that the length adjustment Velcro strap 32 may be used to adjust the length of the heel support belt 30.

In other words, the length adjustment Velcro strap 32 is hooked on the length adjustment link 31 and is tightened to correspond to the size of the user's hand or foot, and the two fastening elements of the length adjustment Velcro strap 32 are attached to each other, thereby easily achieving adjustment of the length of the heel support belt 30.

Although the length adjustment Velcro strap 32 is employed as a means for adjusting the length of the heel support belt 30 in the embodiment, various other length adjustment means may be employed as the means for adjusting the length of the heel support belt 30.

The elastic unit 40 includes an elastic band connection member 41, which is connected to the elastic-unit-coupling portion 21 b provided at the lower portion of the connection link 21 of the support belt 20, and elastic bands 42, each having one end connected to the elastic band connection member 41 and the opposite end fitted into a corresponding one of the elastic unit connection holes 13 formed in the pad body 10, thereby elastically connecting the support belt 20 and the pad body 10.

The elastic band connection member 41 includes a coupling hole 41 a formed in the middle portion thereof, through which the elastic-unit-coupling portion 21 b is fitted, wing-shaped extending plates 41 b, which extend a predetermined length in bilateral directions from the coupling hole 41 a, and band-coupling holes 41 c, which are formed to be bilaterally symmetrical to each other at distal end portions of the extending plates 41 b, and through which the elastic bands 42 are fitted.

The elastic band connection member 41 prevents the elastic bands 42 from touching or rubbing the rear portion of the user's hand or foot. As a result, the user has no foreign body sensation, and the user's heel is prevented from chafing.

The present invention, constructed as described above, allows the user to place the user's hand or foot in the support recess 12 formed in the pad body 10 and to perform exercise such that the user applies force in the direction opposite the direction in which the load of the exercise machine is exerted on the user. Since the user's hand or foot is maintained in the neutral position in the support recess 12 and pressure is evenly applied to pressure points in the palm or the sole, the body correction effect may be maximized, and the balanced development of muscles may be realized.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view illustrating the state in which the KEM Pilates strap pad according to the embodiment of the present invention is assembled with a stance adjustment plate, and FIG. 5 is a perspective view illustrating the state in which the KEM Pilates strap pad according to the embodiment of the present invention is disassembled from the stance adjustment plate.

Referring to FIGS. 4 and 5, the present invention further comprises a stance adjustment plate 50, to which a pair of pad bodies 10 is coupled so as to adjust the distance between the pad bodies 10.

The stance adjustment plate 50 is configured as a board having a substantially rectangular shape. The stance adjustment plate 50 has a stance adjustment slot 51 formed in the middle portion thereof in the longitudinal direction, through which a bolt 14 of each of the pad bodies 10 is fitted so that each of the pad bodies 10 moves therealong.

Each of the pad bodies 10 includes a bolt 14, which extends from the center portion of the bottom surface thereof so as to be fitted through the stance adjustment slot 51 in the stance adjustment plate 50, and a nut 15, which is configured to be engaged with or disengaged from the bolt 14 so as to secure or remove each of the pad bodies 10 to/from the stance adjustment plate 50.

After the bolts 14 of the pair of pad bodies 10 are fitted through the stance adjustment slot 51 in the stance adjustment plate 50, the pad bodies 10 are moved to desired positions along the stance adjustment slot 51 so as to adjust the distance therebetween. When the adjustment of the distance between the pad bodies 10 and the adjustment of the angles of the pad bodies 10 are completed through the aforementioned movement process of the pad bodies 10, the nuts 15 are engaged with the bolts 14, and the pad bodies 10 are securely coupled to the stance adjustment plate 50 at desired positions and desired angles.

The stance adjustment plate 50 has angle adjustment gradations 53 formed on the top surface and/or the bottom surface of the front-left portion and the front-right portion of the stance adjustment plate 50 so that the user may accurately check the angles of the pad bodies 10 and adjust the angles of the pad bodies 10 to a desired value utilizing the angle adjustment gradations 53, and distance adjustment gradations 52 formed on the top surface and/or the bottom surface of the front-middle portion and the rear portion of the stance adjustment plate 50 so that the user may accurately check the distance between the pad bodies 10 and adjust the distance between the pad bodies 10 to a desired value utilizing the distance adjustment gradations 52.

The angle adjustment gradations 53 are formed so as to indicate different angle values so that the user may adjust the angle of each of the pad bodies 10 suitably for the exercise that the user intends to perform.

In terms of the structure of the human body, as the distance between the feet is increased, the front portion of each of the feet is gradually oriented outwards. Therefore, when the user needs to perform exercise with the legs wide apart, the angle of each of the pad bodies 10 is accurately adjusted to a desired value by aligning adjustment markers 10 a, which are formed on the top and bottom surfaces of the front end portion and the rear end portion of the pad body 10, with a desired one of the angle adjustment gradations 53, thereby maximizing the body correction effect.

The distance adjustment gradations 52 enable the user to adjust the distance between the pad bodies 10 so that the user may spread the user's legs apart appropriately for the user's body shape or for the exercise that the user intends to perform.

In other words, when the user intends to adjust the distance between the user's feet appropriately for the user's body shape or for the portion of the body that needs correction, the user may accurately adjust the distance between the pair of pad bodies 10 by aligning the adjustment markers 10 a of the pad bodies 10 with the distance adjustment gradations 52.

FIG. 6 is a view illustrating the state in which the KEM Pilates strap pad according to the embodiment of the present invention is applied to a Gyrotonic machine.

Referring to FIG. 6, the connection link of the pad body 10 may be connected to a Gyrotonic machine 200.

The Gyrotonic machine 200 is an exercise machine that is operated in the vertical direction, and enables the user to perform exercise in a different way from the reformer 100, which is operated in the horizontal direction. In other words, since the direction in which the user applies force when using the Gyrotonic machine 200 equipped with the KEM Pilates strap pad according to the present invention is different from that when using the reformer 100 equipped with the KEM Pilates strap pad, the user obtains a different exercise effect.

As described above, the present invention enables the user to freely adjust the distance between the feet or the angle at which the user's feet or hands are oriented in consideration of the body part to be corrected or the characteristics of the exercise, and is capable of evenly stimulating pressure points in the palm or the sole, thereby producing the same effect as when the user performs exercise on the floor. Further, since the present invention is usable with various existing exercise machines by means of a link connection structure, the user is able to conveniently use a desired exercise machine that is effective for the body part to be corrected or the muscles to be strengthened.

As is apparent from the above description, the KEM Pilates strap pad according to the present invention has the following effects.

First, since the user may perform exercise while placing the user's hand or foot in the neutral position, the body correction effect is maximized.

Second, since the user may perform exercise while standing on the floor, the user may correct the user's gait.

Third, the user's foot may be corrected so as to be maintained in the proper neutral position so that pressure generated due to the user's weight is evenly applied to pressures points in the sole.

Fourth, since expansion and contraction of the muscles may be uniformly and repeatedly achieved by the elastic bands, a problem of imbalance of the muscles may be resolved.

Fifth, the user may freely adjust the distance between the feet or the angle at which the user's feet or hands are oriented in consideration of the body condition or the body shape.

Finally, the present invention provides an excellent body correction effect based on the myofascial meridian concept such that the user utilizes the whole palm when performing a corrective exercise, thereby effectively resolving imbalance of the upper-body muscles and stimulating as many upper-body muscles as possible.

Although the preferred embodiments of the present invention have been disclosed, those skilled in the art will appreciate that various modifications, additions and substitutions are possible, without departing from the scope and spirit of the invention as disclosed in the accompanying claims. 

What is claimed is:
 1. A kinetic chain energy movement (KEM) Pilates strap pad comprising: a pad body for supporting a foot; a support belt extending from two opposite sides of the pad body and provided with a connection link at a portion thereof located above the pad body so as to connect the pad body to an exercise machine; and an elastic unit extending from a portion of the support belt located above the pad body to a rear portion of the pad body so as to elastically connect the support belt and the pad body.
 2. The KEM Pilates strap pad according to claim 1, further comprising: a heel support belt having two opposite end portions connected to the support belt so as to surround and support a heel.
 3. The KEM Pilates strap pad according to claim 1, wherein the pad body is provided in a pair, and the KEM Pilates strap pad further comprises: a stance adjustment plate to which the pair of pad bodies is mounted.
 4. The KEM Pilates strap pad according to claim 3, wherein the stance adjustment plate has a stance adjustment slot formed in a middle portion thereof in a longitudinal direction, and the pad body includes a bolt, extending from a bottom surface thereof so as to be fitted through the stance adjustment slot, and a nut, configured to be engaged with or disengaged from the bolt so as to secure or remove the pad body to/from the stance adjustment plate, and wherein a distance between the pair of pad bodies or an angle of the pad body is adjusted to correspond to an exercise condition by engagement or disengagement between the bolt and the nut.
 5. The KEM Pilates strap pad according to claim 1, wherein the elastic unit includes an elastic band connection member, connected to the connection link provided at the support belt at a middle portion thereof and extending a predetermined length in bilateral directions of the pad body from the middle portion thereof, and a pair of elastic bands, each having one end connected to an end of the elastic band connection member that is spaced apart from the connection link and an opposite end connected to a rear portion of the pad body, thereby elastically connecting the support belt and the pad body.
 6. The KEM Pilates strap pad according to claim 4, wherein the stance adjustment plate has distance adjustment gradations formed therein so as to check a distance between the pair of pad bodies coupled to the stance adjustment plate and adjust the distance between the pair of pad bodies to a desired value, and angle adjustment gradations formed therein so as to check an angle of the pad body and adjust the angle of the pad body to a desired value.
 7. The KEM Pilates strap pad according to claim 6, wherein the distance adjustment gradations and the angle adjustment gradations are formed on both a top surface and a bottom surface of the stance adjustment plate. 